


Fox and the Wallflower

by Liza_Taylor



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Eventual Romance, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, High School Shojo AU, Romance, Romantic Fluff, Shoujo, Slow Burn, Slow Romance, Teen Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-04
Updated: 2020-09-22
Packaged: 2021-03-05 00:15:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 15,673
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25075216
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Liza_Taylor/pseuds/Liza_Taylor
Summary: Sylvain is the playboy of the school, all he cares about is having casual relationships with girls, the last thing he wants is a girlfriend.Bernadetta is just trying to get through high school without her anxiety taking over every single thing she wants to do.When Sylvain discovers Bernadetta's notebook and the story she wrote, well high school is going to get a little more complicated.Modern High School Shojo AU(complete with all the fun shojo tropes)
Relationships: Annette Fantine Dominic/Felix Hugo Fraldarius, Ashe Duran | Ashe Ubert/Yuris Leclair | Yuri Leclerc, Dimitri Alexandre Blaiddyd/Ingrid Brandl Galatea, Dorothea Arnault/Petra Macneary, Sylvain Jose Gautier & Bernadetta von Varley, Sylvain Jose Gautier/Bernadetta von Varley, Yuris Leclair | Yuri Leclerc & Bernadetta von Varley
Comments: 23
Kudos: 83





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Like always, back to my Sylbern nonsense. xD After writing my modern AU with them as platonic best friends forever, I knew I wanted to write something a little more romantic and what better way than through a shojo AU? xD So yeah, expect a lot of fun shojo tropes. 
> 
> The world setting is modern and I want to say like a mix of Japan/not Japan? So modern Fodlan with a very anime/Japan vibe to it. I'll just go with that. 
> 
> I'll also go with a few of the names from my other fic in terms of family members for the cast(since the game didn't give us any. >.>)
> 
> Anyway, enough blabering from me, enjoy.

Honestly, Sylvain should have expected the slap.

The signs were already there, she had asked to meet with him in a corner of the second school library. It was smaller than the main library with less books and well, Sylvain never understood why it was not just converted into another classroom since no one came in here. When he had arrived, she was waiting for him in that corner, behind the shelves.

“Sylvain…I no longer want to be a fling, I want us to be something more.”

Sylvain didn’t do commitment. His way was to meet with girls casually, maybe go on one date to get to know each other a little to make it less awkward, but the end goal was always the same. Casual sex. That was all. That was all he was looking for, that was all he ever wanted. That was the reputation he kept up in school and he had no interest in changing it.

Of course the girl didn’t take it that well, hitting him across the face with a slap that made his teeth rattle.

“You’re…such a jerk!” she yelled, tears streaming down her face.

Sylvain just touched the side of his face, more annoyed that he probably had a mark there now. Also, did he bite the inside of his cheek? He could taste blood. Damn, this sucked.

The girl ran past him and Sylvain stepped to the side to let her go. “Good riddance,” he said, rubbing the side of his face. Although he had to admit, he really did like her boobs. He was going to miss those. Sighing, he walked out of the stacks while rubbing his cheek. “She didn’t have to hit me that hard,” he grumbled.

He stopped, noticing a girl standing by one of the tables, a pile of books in hand. At least, Sylvain assumed it was a girl since she wore the girls school uniform, a blazer over a collared white shirt and a plaid skirt. Besides that she didn’t look much like a girl, no trace of makeup at all on her face, her short hair a frazzled poofy purple mess. She stared with wide-gray eyes in the direction of the open door of the library and back at Sylvain and then back again.

Damn, he didn’t notice her when he walked in? Sylvain thought they were alone, the girl that confessed to him seemed like the type that didn’t want things like this to be overheard. Although the girl in front of him looked like the type that was able to blend into the crowd and not be noticed by anyone.

“Uh sorry!” she stammered before bolting, one of the items in her hands tumbling to the ground in her mad haste to get out of this awkward situation.

“Hang on you forgot…and she’s gone.” Sylvain had never seen anyone run so fast before in his life. That girl had to be on the track team. He walked over and picked up the item from the floor, a notebook. Hopefully it wasn’t something she needed for class. Rubbing his stinging cheek, he flipped it open, expecting to see a name on the inside cover with the class number.

There was nothing of that sort, instead the pages seemed to filled with a handwritten story.

_“There was once a girl named Vernie who had the ability to vanquish monsters with her sword.”_ Sylvain might be an asshole(he wouldn’t lie to himself about what kind of person he was) but reading someone’s notebook and invading their privacy was not something he did. However, for some reason he couldn’t stop. He turned the page after page slowly getting more and invested in the story of Vernie the monster hunter. She was apparently a normal girl by day, soft-spoken and quiet but she protected her town at night from the evil monsters that threatened to destroy it with her talking sword and an animal sidekick named Nee by her side. It had everything, an action packed story, comedy and was that a little romance he saw? Her supportive friend, Momo, seemed to be giving hints he liked her but Sylvian wasn’t sure if he was just being a good friend or not. Although it was suspicious that he seemed to always know exactly where the monsters would be.

Sylvain turned the page, ready to read the next adventure but was met with an empty blank page. “Wait…no…” He flipped through the rest of the notebook but like the page he was on, everything else was blank. He looked up and realized the library was getting dark. Damn, he had been here so late reading. Most of the clubs had probably gone home by now.

What was he supposed to do now? There were no other indicators of who this notebook belonged to. How was he going to find the girl? Garreg Mach was a huge high school and she had been holding her books so close to her chest so he couldn’t see the pin that said what grade she was in.

He kept a tight but careful grip on the notebook as he went to retrieve his school bag from where he had dropped it earlier during the girl’s confession of her undying love to him. He flipped it open and gently put the notebook inside, making sure it was cushioned between two of his own notebooks to prevent it from being jostled and damaged. Tomorrow, he had a mystery to solve.

***

It wasn’t here!

Bernadetta opened her school bag and poured all of the contents onto her bed. She pushed aside her pens and pencils, checking each notebook. No, only her labelled one for classes were here. Where was her original work notebook!?

“Oh no Vernie!” Bernadetta grabbed a fistful of her own hair as she stared at the mess on her bed. She had a part of it typed up on her laptop but most of it was only handwritten. She had gotten so much of Vernie’s story done when she sat in the library after school. But now it was gone! Vernie’s story was gone!

Wait. The library!

She remembered having to flee as Sylvain Gautier came out from behind the stacks. That was an awkward meeting to say in the least. It wasn’t like she was trying to eavesdrop on their conversation, they were just being very loud. And that slap! She could hear it from where she was sitting and as the girl fled, she had scrambled to get her things together and make a quick escape.

It would have totally worked if Sylvain hadn’t come out from behind the stacks at that moment and looked at her, the side of his face bright red. Despite how large their school was, everyone knew Sylvain Gautier. He was surprisingly popular, partly because of his good lucks and partly because he knew how to give girls a “good time”. A known playboy, Bernadetta had overheard a few girls from her class boasting about getting to spend a night with him. 

Someone that a wallflower like Bernadetta wanted nothing to do with.

Seeing him there, seemingly waiting for her response made her flight or fight response kick in at full steam and she ran, her thoughts fleeing her. Her only goal was to get away from the awkward situation and him. She came to only once she was past the school gates and she quickly headed for home, wanting to put this crazy day behind her.

Did she drop her notebook in the library in her mad escape? Oh no, what if Sylvain picked it up and read it? She dismissed that thought immediately. With how Sylvain was rumored to be, he probably didn’t notice it or even if he did, he probably only read a page or two. A story with a strong female lead probably was not in his interests, also Sylvain did not seem like the type of person who read for fun anyway.

Maybe her notebook was still in the library. She bit her lip as she grabbed her phone and set her alarm for an hour early. If she went to the library as soon as she got to school, she might find her notebook on the floor, or in one of the hallways in her mad dash to escape. Yes, good plan.

She put her hands over her churning stomach. “Everything will be fine. No one likes reading anymore and your handwriting is all loopy and stuff, no one will want to read it, and your story is bad and there’s probably so many plot holes…”

Glancing up at the clock, Bernadetta realized how late it was getting. Crap, she needed to make dinner! After tossing all of her school supplies back in her bag, she hurried into the kitchen and immediately started making the rice and then checked the schedule on the fridge. “Let’s see…today is Thursday so Mom is going to be home at ten…”

Nodding, Bernadetta went into the fridge and pulled out some of the vegetables and a package of meat. Since Emery was not working overnight, that meant Bernadetta could have dinner with her, albeit pretty late. She grabbed a bag of chips from the pantry to munch on while she cooked to help keep the hunger at bay.


	2. Chapter 2

“Bernadetta, are you okay? You look like you were run over by a car or something.”

Bernadetta lifted her head from its resting place on her desk as Yuri patted her shoulder her shoulder before taking the seat in front of her. After putting his school bag on the hook, he sat backwards in his chair, his hands resting on the back as he regarded her.

“I can’t find it Yuri. I looked all over the library and also the halls before it got too crowded but I can’t find it!”

“You can’t find what?” Yuri looked at her like she had grown another head.

“My notebook,” she whispered.

Yuri frowned. “The one with the Vernie story in it?”

Bernadetta nodded miserably. “I think I dropped it yesterday when I was running away from the library.”

“Wait, hang on, _you_ of all people were running away from the library?” Yuri raised an eyebrow. “Are you feeling okay Bernie?” He put a hand on her forehead and felt his own forehead. “No, doesn’t look like you have a fever.”

Bernadetta pushed his hand away. “It wasn’t my fault…it was just…really awkward to stay there.”

“Awkward? How?”

Saying what happened out loud felt super embarrassing. She glanced around the classroom but it didn’t look like anyone was paying them mind. Well, her at least. Here or there, a student would walk in and bid a hello to Yuri. He was the popular one and she was, well she was Bernie. She pulled her phone out of her blazer pocket and quickly texted Yuri what happened.

He gave her a funny look but took out his phone as the text went through and he whistled as he read it. “Dang Bernie, you were really in an awkward situation there. Although I don’t think running away like you did was probably the best response in that situation.”

“I just didn’t know what to do,” she stammered, looking down at her desk.

“Why don’t I help you find it after school?” suggested Yuri. “Oh, maybe someone found it and turned it into the teacher’s lounge?”

“Maybe…” Although she didn’t know how to handle it if a teacher found and read her work. Ugh, why didn’t she type up all of Vernie’s story so she had a backed up copy!?

However there was nothing she could do about it now as their homeroom teacher walked in, signaling the beginning of class.

***

“You want us to figure out who the owner of this notebook is just based on handwriting alone? What are we some sort of detective agency?” Felix looked at Sylvain in disgust and tossed the notebook back in his direction.

“Careful!” yelled Sylvain, diving to catch it before it could hit the ground. “Damn it Felix, this is probably the only copy, you need to be careful with it.”

“I agree,” spoke up Ingrid. Despite the fact they were having lunch on the roof of the school and sitting on the concrete floor, Ingrid always seemed to have poise and respect to her, as she sat on her knees, her home made boxed lunch in her lap. Of course, Ingrid’s level of poise and respect was directly related to how well one knew her. Being her childhood friend, Sylvain knew she could fight as well as any of the boys and there was many a time he lost to her in a fight. Of course he always pretended to forget that whenever Ingrid brought it up. Also her mother made her boxed lunches for her but apparently everyone in class thought Ingrid did and Ingrid had given up a while ago trying to correct them.

“What if someone trampled on something you worked so hard on?”

“Well I wouldn’t have to worry about it because I wouldn’t have it out to be trampled upon,” grumbled Felix.

“Well, what if it was something Annette gave you,” Ingrid retorted.

Felix took a bite of the bread he bought for lunch, half-glaring at Ingrid for making a good point.

“Are you sure you don’t know who she is?” Sylvain asked Dimitri.

The fourth member of their little childhood friend circle was the only one that put down a small tablecloth before sitting on the concrete floor. His homemade lunch was even bigger than Ingrid’s and was apparently “balanced” even though it looked to be fifty percent protein. Dimitri was also on the student council which meant he had to know about the students that went to the school, right?

“This a big school Sylvain, the likelihood of me even knowing who that is if they don’t work for the student council is slim.”

“Damn.” Sylvain sighed and gently set the notebook in his lap. How in the world was he going to find out more about Vernie at this rate?

“Why don’t you go back to the library today?” suggested Ingrid. “If she wants it back, she’ll probably look for it in the last place she saw it right?”

“Oh true! That’s a good idea Ingrid!” He set the notebook down and picked up his lunch. Like Felix, he survived on a diet of stuffed breads from the school store. He didn’t want to risk getting crumbs on it.

“Just don’t be you, alright?” Ingrid rubbed the bridge of her nose.

“What does that mean?” he protested.

“I think she means don’t be your dumbass playboy self,” retorted Felix.

“Sheesh guys, I know how to keep it in my pants.” He rolled his eyes. “I mean we’re friends, right Ingrid?”

“Remember when you hit on my poor grandmother?” she retorted.

“Sheesh, you’re never going to let me live that down are you?”

“Of course not, that was traumatizing for me to watch!”

“Come on now you two,” Dimitri said quickly. “We have five minutes before we need to head back to the classroom, let’s not spend it fighting.”

“It’s not my fault Ingrid wanted to pick a fight,” protested Sylvain.

“It’s not that she wants to pick a fight, it’s your reputation has spread through the whole school,” said Felix.

“Exactly,” said Ingrid. “This poor girl probably thinks of you as a player based on your reputation.”

“Oh crap I didn’t even think of that.” Was that why she looked so nervous yesterday and fled? Did she think he was going to hit on her? No way in heck he would do that. She was way not his type and he had just dealt with a girl trying to be something more. He wasn’t in the mood and now after reading her story, heck no he would flirt with someone that wrote something so amazing. She was worth way more than that.

Ingrid did bring up a good point though. This would definitely need to be a careful conversation, he didn’t want to give her the wrong idea. Especially since she seemed to run like she was a member of the track team. Hmm, this was going to take a bit of thinking.

“If only he could put this much effort into being a decent person,” sighed Ingrid as she began packing up her lunchbox.

***

Bernadetta walked out of the teacher’s lounge, defeated.

“Don’t worry Bernie, it’ll show up,” said Yuri. He patted her shoulder.

“I hope so,” she said softly.

“Why don’t we look around a bit more? I’ll check the second floor hallway. Maybe you can check the library again?”

“Sure,” she replied. She had a feeling it was gone for good but she knew if she said it, Yuri would lecture her to think more positively. It was one of the faults of her personality.

“Bernie, really, we’re going to find that notebook.” Yuri put his hands on Bernadetta’s shoulders and forced her to look him in the eyes. “We will save Vernie and you can continue to write her story, okay?”

“Okay,” she whispered.

After giving her another pat on the shoulder, he took off in the direction of the second floor hall while Bernadetta headed for the second library. By this point in the day, most students had gone home, which meant there was a strong likelihood that the library would be empty. Good, then if she couldn’t find her notebook in here, no one could see her cry.

She opened the door, froze and rubbed her eyes. She wasn’t dreaming right? A notebook sat on one of the work desks. She struggled to not let excitement build within her as she slowly approached the table. Vernie’s story was written in a generic brand notebook, it could be anyone’s notebook, but why would it be sitting out on a desk?

She stopped in front of the desk and picked up the notebook with shaky fingers and opened it.

_“There was once a girl named Vernie who had the ability to vanquish monsters with her sword.”_

“Vernie!” She clutched the notebook tight to her chest. It was back in her hands, Vernie was safe and back home. The first thing she was going to do when she got home was to type all of it up so she would have a backup. She reached into the pocket of her blazer to grab her phone to text Yuri she found it when she realized how odd it was that her notebook was sitting on a table in the library. If someone had found it, they would probably take it or give it to a teacher. There was no way an unclaimed notebook would be left alone in the library for over twenty-four hours.

It was then she noticed the prickling on the back of her neck, like someone was watching her. She clutched her notebook tight to her chest and fearfully looked at the stacks. “Uh, hello?” she stammered.

“Hi,” came a soft voice back.

Bernadetta let out a small shriek. There was someone else here!?

“Please don’t run!” The voice said quickly as Bernadetta turned to the door.

Of course that made Bernadetta’s urge to run away stronger. She edged towards the door, hating how her legs were shaking.

“I really liked the story!” the voice continued. “Vernie is such a good protagonist and I loved her adventures and the way the fight scenes are written had me on the edge of my seat.”

Oh gods, whoever this person was had _read_ her work!? She wanted to die, she wanted the ground to swallow her whole. This person had read her first draft. Her crappy first draft with spelling errors, probably not consistent plotlines and she knew Vernie’s personality had shifted slightly from when she started writing to what it was now due to her naturally getting a better handle on writing the character. Not even Yuri had read the story yet! She had to be polite though right? Even if all she wanted to do was wave a wand have this voice forget everything they read. “Uh…thank you,” she stammered.

“I was hoping I could read more…when you’re done with it of course.”

“Read more!?” Bernadetta’s eyes widen.

“If you don’t mind. I want to know if Vernie ends up being able to find the cause of all of the monsters spawning in the city. Also her friend is real suspicious and I’m thinking he might be working for the baddies. Although maybe he isn’t and it’s just a red herring. Not sure yet but it speaks to your ability to write that you were able to raise that suspicion in the first place and keep me guessing.”

Bernadetta blinked slowly, not really sure to take all the praise being thrown at her. Also, the person’s voice definitely had a masculine quality to it. A boy? A boy had been reading her work!? Great, just great, her anxiety was shooting through the roof.

“Uh, do you mind coming out?” If she knew who it was, at least she would know who to avoid.

A pause. “Are you going to run away if I do?”

Wait, how did he know she had a tendency to run? Was it someone from her class? No, she knew the voices of the boys in her class. They were all pretty loud except for Yuri.

“Uh, I promise to not run?”

Silence. “You really promise to not run?”

“I really promise?” she stammered. Her grip tightened around the notebook. This whole thing sounded so weird now.

After a couple of tense seconds, he walked out from behind the stacks, his hands up in a gesture of surrender.

Bernadetta had to bite her tongue to prevent herself from screaming.

It was Sylvain Gautier. Like always he wore his uniform in a casual way. The tie loose, the top two buttons undone, his hair styled up by gel. She could still remember how he looked yesterday after rejecting that girl, the side of his face bright red from a slap, his expression pissed off. The only thing she could think of to get out of that awkward situation was to flee.

The same boy had been talking about her writing like he _enjoyed_ it.

“Don’t freak out,” he said quickly. “This is why I didn’t want to come out.”

She kept her mouth shut, her legs quaking. What was she supposed to do? Sure she could flee but she also promised that she wouldn’t run. Ack, the two sides of her anxiety were clashing and she hated it.

He slowly lowered his arms and stopped ten feet from her. “I know I don’t have the best reputation on campus and all but I’m being genuine here, I really did like your writing and I hope I could read some more.” After a short pause he added quickly, “My name is Sylvain Gautier by the way. Second year. You?”

“B…Bernadetta…Varley,” she stammered. “Uh, second year.”

“Oh, so we’re both second years then. Cool.”

“Uh huh…”

Awkward silence descended on them.

Bernadetta wondered if this would be a good time to flee.

Sylvain grimaced and rested his hand on the back of his neck. “I know I kind of put you in a spot. But, I’ll be willing to read more if you feel comfortable for me to do so. Or if not that’s okay, I get that this is probably super weird for you. Uh, I put my number in the back of your notebook if you want to reach out to me.”

Bernadetta looked down at the notebook and flipped to the back. Based on how he said it, she thought he wrote it in the notebook but instead it was a post-it note stuck to the last page with a phone number on it.

She looked up and saw Sylvain had stuffed his hands the pockets of his pants and was cautiously watching her. “It’s up to you,” he said softly, “No pressure.”

“Uh, okay,” she replied. After another beat of silence she whispered, “Can I go now?”

“Oh, yeah sure.”

Finally able to give in to her initial instinct, she fled.


	3. Chapter 3

“I can’t believe he wants to read your writing.” Yuri repeated with wide-eyed shock.

Bernadetta nodded miserably before burying her head in her hands. “Yeah. What am I supposed to do Yuri?”

“Well first eat your parfait before it falls apart.”

Bernadetta sighed and took a bite of her parfait while Yuri went back to attending to the slice of cake. After running from Sylvain, she didn’t stop until she was out of the school and then texted Yuri where she was. Yuri, realizing immediately that she needed to talk to him about it but also knew sweets would help, insisted they go to a local café and discuss what happened over desserts.

“She said she is just around the corner,” said Yuri, checking his phone.

“That’s good…” Bernadetta poked at her parfait, really wishing she could just wave a hand and solve this problem.

The bell on the door of the café jingled and Bernadetta turned to see Dorothea walk in. She scanned the room and when she caught sight of Bernadetta and Yuri, her eyes sparkled and she gave them a quick wave before heading for the counter to order. Bernadetta was always low-key jealous with how put together Dorothea always seemed to be. Her brown ringlets always looking beautiful, makeup flawless, her uniform always pressed clean without a dirt or crumb on it. She was also way braver than Bernadetta, her skirt rolled up to make it shorter so it showed off her thighs.

Dorothea had been in Bernadetta’s class last year. Usually someone like that wouldn’t pat attention to someone as quiet and withdrawn as Bernadetta, but she had spotted the hand-knit teddy bear charm hanging off of Bernadetta’s bag and asked about where she could get one. They had built up a friendship ever since and even though they were in different classes, Dorothea always went out of her way to make sure they stayed in touch. She also liked buying Bernadetta’s handmade knit charms and paid way too much for them and she refused to let Bernadetta take less money citing that “it was a tip”.

“Alright, what’s going on?” Dorothea took a seat and put her frappe on the table before swiping a strawberry off of Yuri’s cake.

“Honestly, why don’t you ever take from Bernie?” Yuri sighed.

“Because she’s a cutie,” retorted Dorothea. She turned her bright smile to Bernadetta and her expression shifted to concern. “What’s wrong Bernie?”

“It’s quite a story,” Yuri said with a sigh. “I know with your…disposition, you will probably have a valid opinion on how to handle this matter.”

Dorothea raised an eyebrow. “Go on.”

Thankfully Yuri was willing to take the lead on the explanation. Bernadetta interjected a few comments here and there but she let him do it. Yuri was so much better at saying things clear and concise compared to her rambling and like always he was able to take her rambling and say it in a way that made it understandable for anyone that wasn’t her childhood friend.

Dorothea took a long sip of her frappe. “Well that’s something,” she said finally.

“Do you think he’s being sincere?” asked Yuri.

Dorothea leaned back, and crossed her arms. “I’m honestly not sure. Perhaps I should have a talk with him. Just to gather a bit more information.”

“You would do that?” whispered Bernadetta, wide-eyed.

“Of course.” Dorothea gave Bernadetta a gentle smile. “Give me twenty four hours and I’ll see what I can find out for you.”

***

“Sylvain, someone is here to see you.”

Sylvain looked up from his phone and saw Dorothea standing in the entrance of the classroom, her demeanor as aloof and standoffish as always.

“You better not come back unless you wash off any lipstick on you,” said Ingrid as Sylvain got up.

Sylvain rolled his eyes and bid his friends goodbye before going over to Dorothea. “I thought we were going to wait at least a month before having any sort of time together again.”

“Get your mind out of the gutter, I’m not here for any of that today. Come on.”

Sylvain shrugged and stuffed his hands in his pockets before following her to the walkway that connected the two halves of the school that overlooked the track field. The windows here could be opened and they were since it was a warm spring day.

Dorothea leaned against one of the open windows and looked out to the track and Sylvain copied suit. He knew his relationship with Dorothea confused his friends. They had an odd friendship built up between them, both being the type of people who had casual sexual relationships. While Dorothea tended to build up hers with a few dates and squeezing out a few presents, Sylvain tended to go for one date and then skip right to the main act. They had ended up sleeping together a few times but it was few and far between, boredom being the key factor or wanting to feel something in that moment.

“So, I would like to eat lunch during my lunch break,” said Sylvain when Dorothea didn’t say anything at first.

“What is your end goal with Bernie?”

“Bernie? Whose that?” Sylvain tried to go through the list of all of his current girls but he didn’t recall anyone with that name.

“Ah, I think she introduced herself with her full name then. Bernadetta.”

Sylvain’s elbow almost slipped off the ledge.

“I’m friends with her and she informed me about a certain _someone_ talking to her in the library yesterday about her writing.”

Sylvain set his hand on the back of neck and tried to appear as casual as possible. “So, what did she say about it?”

“I’m asking you the questions here Sylvain.” Dorothea’s eyes took on the dangerous edge. He had seen this look before, she had made many people quiver under that gaze when it was at its full potential. “What is your end goal with Bernie? Do you want to take her to bed too?”

“What? No! No, nothing like that!” Sylvain shook his head, the thought just incredibly weird to him.

“I thought so, she is out of your usual strike zone. You don’t aim for the quiet, soft-spoken, please protect me types so I was wondering about that.”

Sylvain blinked slowly. “That was pretty specific. Are you sure you’re not into her?”

Dorothea gave Sylvain an annoyed look. “Unlike someone here, I can separate my girlfriends from my _girlfriends_.” She waved Sylvain’s comment away. “And besides, she’s a cutie but not my type to date. I would gobble her up and spit out her bones.”

Sylvain sometimes forgot how scary Dorothea could be.

“Anyway, I’m getting off topic here. My question is, you genuinely want to read her writing?”

Sylvain put his hand on the back of his neck and looked up and down the walkway to make sure no one was around. Him with Dorothea wasn’t weird, the topic though was and just saying that kind of stuff out loud where people could overhear was not something he wanted to do. “I do. Her writing is super good Dorothea. Like I’m not a huge fiction reader myself but I really liked Vernie’s character and Bernadetta’s writing just drew me in. I mean, I get if she doesn’t want to be around me…considering what she probably saw the day before but I really, really want to read more.”

Dorothea stared at him thoughtfully. “You’re being truthful right now.”

“Of course I am. Seriously, why would I lie about something like this? It’s just embarrassing to think about okay?” It was already bad enough that Dorothea of all people knew that he liked Bernadetta’s writing. At least the one good thing was that Dorothea wasn’t one to go around spilling secrets.

“Well, I just wanted to hear that from you.” She stepped away from the wall. “I’ll let her know you aren’t being a creep…although if you do try anything with her….” Dorothea had her pointer and middle finger up and she closed and opened them like scissors.

Message loud and clear there. “Thanks Dorothea.”

“Oh don’t thank me, I’m telling her you’re being genuine in wanting to read her work. It is up to her whether she wants you to read it or not.”

“That’s fine, I get it. Oh and Dorothea?”

Dorothea was about to walk away but she turned and looked back. “Yes?”

“It’s okay if she doesn’t either. I get that she might be too embarrassed to and if so, then I’m happy I got to read what I was able to. What? Why are you looking at me like that?”

Dorothea shook her head slightly. “Just shocked that there are other kinds of thoughts that goes through that head of yours.”

Sylvain couldn’t help his wry grin.

She rolled her eyes. “Men. Anyway, go back to your sad, paltry lunch.”

“Oh don’t worry I’ll enjoy it.” Sylvain headed back to his classroom and he could tell his friends were surprised that Sylvain was back so soon.

“Did something happened?” asked Dimitri.

Felix smirked. “Don’t tell me you managed to mess up the one relationship that is almost impossible to do so.”

Sylvain gave Felix a deadpan blink before lunging at him, struggling to get him in headlock while Felix flailed and tried to fight back.

“Boys,” said Ingrid with a long sigh.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait but my work schedule has picked up within the past week so my free time is fading fast. >_<

Bernadetta cracked her fingers as she finished the sentence, thus marking the end of another chapter of the tale of Vernie, the monster fighter. She flipped the pen over in her hand as she stared down at her words, her thoughts going to the conversation with Sylvain in the library over a week ago.

Dorothea had texted her the next day during lunch that she talked to Sylvain and got the sense he was being sincere about liking her work and that he wasn’t expecting anything else from her besides what he told her during their meeting. It was up to Bernadetta if she wanted to meet with him or not, but if she did and Sylvain did anything to make her uncomfortable, Dorothea said she would “take care of him”.

Bernadetta had seen Dorothea angry once and she had felt second-hand fear for the poor boy that experienced her wrath. She hadn’t thought about it since then but now that she had finished the chapter…

She opened her drawer and took out the post-it note with Sylvain’s number on it. Since Dorothea had said Sylvain wasn’t being a weirdo, she hadn’t thrown it out, but his number wasn’t in her phone either. Should she tell him?

She remembered their last interaction and what she overheard. Was that even a good idea. He wanted to _read_ her writing! Even Yuri had only read a couple things she had written.

“Bernie! Dinner!”

“Coming!” Bernadetta closed the notebook and hurried into the kitchen. Emery had made her famous curry and was already scooping it onto a plate with some rice. “Smells good Mom,” she said, taking the seat across from her, making it a point to not look at her mother’s dark circles. Bernadetta was willing to cook but whenever Emery was home early, she always insisted on cooking Bernadetta dinner, joking that she had to be a real mom sometimes.

“So how’s school been? Classes going well?”

Bernadetta nodded. “Yes, they are. A lot of homework but I’m getting them done.”

“That’s my girl.” Emery took a bite of her curry and looked at Bernadetta thoughtfully. “Is there something else though?” She chuckled at Bernadetta’s surprised look. “I am your mother after all, it’s easy to tell when something is bothering you.”

“Uh yeah. It’s related to this boy in my school…”

“Oh? A boy?” Emery put down her spoon, her eyes twinkling.

“No! Not like that! It’s…it’s more to do with my writing.”

“Your writing?”

Bernadetta quickly explained what happened over a week ago. How she dropped her notebook and then it was found by Sylvain, who gave it back to her the next day and insisting he loved her work. She didn’t give her mother the details about Sylvain’s playboy nature, that didn’t have anything to do with this as per Dorothea’s insistence.

“Hmmm, well if you want to, might as well let him read it right? Feedback is always good in making your writing better and having a second set of eyes will help you figure out any plotholes and whatnot.”

“True…” Bernadetta poked at her plate of curry.

Emery’s expression darkened. “Is it because of your father?”

“What? No.”

“Are you sure Bernie? You’ve never been good around boys, bless Yuri for being with you for so long but…”

“It’s fine…I’m fine about that,” Bernadetta stammered. “I was just debating on having Sylvain read more, that’s all. It has nothing to do with him being a boy. Anyway, this curry is really good today mom. Did you use more apples? Jam?”

Emery chucked. “You’re going to have to keep guessing to figure out my secret ingredient.” She took a bite of curry herself as the topic shifted to other things.

Once dinner was done, and the dishes cleaned up, Bernadetta bid her mother a goodnight before returning to her room. Her notebook sat on the table, staring up at her, Sylvain’s post-it note next to it. She bit her lip, as she picked up the post-it note. “This has nothing to do with Dad at all,” she mumbled. Sure she was nervous around boys but she was scared of talking to anyone she didn’t know well! Having to talk in class was a nightmare and to make matters worse, this involved her _writing_. Her pride and joy, the hobby she was trying to cultivate.

Having the opinion of someone who wasn’t a friend would be useful, Sylvain had no reason to lie to her that her if her work was trash. Before she could lose courage, she grabbed her phone and quickly typed a message.

***

“And that’s my win!” Sylvain put down the controller and grinned as Felix put down his controller and groaned. Sylvain looked smug as he clicked through back to the character selection screen. “And here you thought you could beat me with my main fighter.”

“Yes, yes I know you’re amazing at this game, stop rubbing it in,” grumbled Felix. He sighed and checked the clock on the wall. “It’s getting late.”

Sylvain glanced at the clock and sighed. “Fine, fine, I get it, I’ll see myself out.”

“It’s a school night. Hurry up and get out before my parents suggest you stay over.”

“Awww, you don’t want to spend the night together?”

“Stop making it sound like something it isn’t.”

“You’re so mean Felix.” Sylvain paused, feeling his phone go off in his pocket.

“Seriously, one of your girls is texting you now?” Felix rolled his eyes. “How desperate can you be.”

“Oh shut up.” He glanced at his phone and surprised to see it was a number he didn’t recognize. One of those spam texts then? He opened it curiously and almost dropped his phone as he read the message.

_“Hi, it’s Bernie. I finished the next chapter and you said you wanted me to let you know when it was done so you can read it. If you want to of course, no pressure.”_

A second message had come in right under it. _“I meant it’s Bernadetta. Sorry, I realized you might know who it was based on the name everyone calls me by.”_

“Can you stop with that grin, you’re really starting to freak me out,” said Felix.

Was he smiling? Sylvain put a hand over his mouth. Oh, he was! He looked to Felix. “Bernadetta answered me! She’s asking if I want to read more of her work!”

“Bernadetta?” Felix stared blankly at him. “Oh wait, that girl whose notebook you found?”

“Yes! Her!” Sylvain quickly typed back a response.

_“I would love to read it! You want to meet up tomorrow in the library after school? No pressure though if that’s too soon.”_

He put his phone away and gathered up his things. Felix had a point, if he was here any longer, Felix’s parents would suggest Sylvain stay the night and although he was here often enough, Felix would get super cranky about it, especially since Sylvain knew Felix was planning on calling and talking to Annette a little later tonight.

After bidding farewell to everyone in the family, Sylvain left and house and then entered his house, the one right next to it. Ironically, Sylvain’s and Felix’s rooms faced each other and when they were younger, they would throw paper airplanes and other objects into each other’s rooms. After saying a quick hello to his parents, he hurried up to his room and jumped onto his bed and checked his phone. A message back from Bernadetta, barely two minutes ago.

_“That’s fine. I’ll see you then. Do you want me to type it up or…”_

Sylvain thought for a moment before responding. _“I honestly liked it in the notebook. Your handwriting is really cute and it adds to the story.”_

He sent the message and then paused, staring at it. Wait, was it weird to call a girl’s handwriting “cute” when he wasn’t trying to send any of _those_ kinds of signals? His first instinct was to text Ingrid and ask about that but Ingrid probably wouldn’t give him a response back right away, she would probably demand to know why he was asking such a question.

After another moment of hesitation, he added another text. _“I didn’t mean anything by your handwriting is cute. It was just an observation, your handwriting has all those loops and whatnot.”_

Was that weird to say? Too late now. Better he sound like a weird dork than sound like he was hitting on her, Just based on their interaction before and Dorothea’s comments, she was definitely the type that would probably be uncomfortable with any kind of flirting. Making her comfortable while he read her work was going to be difficult but he knew it would be worth it.

Getting a message back, he looked down at his phone.

_“Thank you. Your handwriting is nice too. It’s very legible and neat.”_

That had to mean something right? That she was comfortable enough to comment on his handwriting? Or maybe it was a writer thing? What was happening here? Sylvain Gautier, playboy was getting excited about a girl talking about his handwriting. He thanked her and then stated he would see her tomorrow. He debated on sending her a message saying good night but decided against it, that might be a little too weird, especially since they technically didn’t know each other.

Before Sylvain got ready for bed, he saved Bernadetta’s number to his phone.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait in between chapters! My work schedule is finally starting to slow down a bit so I have time to at least write a little again. Starting to try and get back into the swing of things!

Bernadetta clutched her notebook tight to her chest, her legs shaking as she made her way to the library. Yuri had wanted to come with her but he had to do something with his family after school and Dorothea already had a date planned. She did state that if Sylvain did something, to text her immediately and Dorothea would come running to “rip him apart”.

She stopped outside the door, her breath coming out so fast, her heart pounding hard against her ribcage, she feared she was going to faint. “It’ll be fine, Bernie, it’ll be fine. He’s just reading your work, nothing else is going to happen.”

After taking another deep breath, she opened the library door. Besides Sylvain sitting at one of the tables, it was empty.

“There you are Bernadetta, I was just about to text you.”

Oh that’s right, she was pretty late wasn’t she? They were supposed to meet right after school but she had taken her sweet time in getting here, her fear and panic taking over multiple times. Stupidly enough, it was that same level of anxiety that made sure she came here in the first place.

She nodded and walked over to the table. “Uh…sorry I’m late,” she said softly.

“It’s fine, I’m just glad you were willing to meet with me after all, your story is amazing and I really want to see where Vernie’s story goes next. Oh, are you going to sit?”

Right. She should sit down, standing here awkwardly was weird. Her hands shook as she pulled out the chair across from him and sat down. As she did, she noticed he pulled his legs back a bit, so she had more leg room on her side. After carefully pulling the notebook out from her bag, she held it out to him. “Here you go.” 

“Thanks Bernadetta.” He took it from her and opened it, obviously searching where he had been. It surprised her how gentle he was being, like her notebook was a priceless heirloom or something. “Oh here we go.” He paused and looked at her. “So uh, are you going to just stare at me while I read?”

“Oh, right, sorry.” It was probably super awkward being stared at while someone was reading. She grabbed her phone and began going through her feed, in an attempt to distract herself from the churning in her stomach. However she couldn’t help but glance at Sylvain, trying to discern what he thought about her work from his expression.

Surprisingly he was very expressive. His eyes widen at a scene and then he let out an audible gasp before wincing as he kept reading, his eyes darting back and forth across the page quickly. He seemed to be as fast of a reader as she was, but he still carefully turned each page, like it was a delicate feather.

He finished faster than she expected, and he looked up at her wide-eyed.

“Uh, yes?” she stammered.

“That was super good! Holy crap, that whole fight scene between Vernie and that snake-monster, I was on the edge of my seat, there were way too many close calls.” He ran his fingers through his hair. “And I don’t know if I trust her Nee anymore, he seems a bit sketchy, I wonder if he’s working for the bad guys, I hope not. Oh man I have so many more questions and not enough answers!” He blinked. “Sorry, if I went on a tangent there.”

“N…no, that was fine,” she said quickly. It was honestly better than fine. She never expected anyone to talk about her work like that. Even her mother, her biggest fan, never analyzed her work the way Sylvain did and she was honestly surprised he picked up on the subtle clues about future aspects of the plot.

Sylvain carefully closed the notebook and held it out to her. “Thank you for letting me read more of your work Bernadetta.”

“Bernie.”

“Huh?”

“My…my name. Everyone calls me Bernie, you don’t need to call me Bernadetta…”

“Bernie….Bernie,” he repeated and then nodded. “Alright, I have it committed to memory.” His wide smile made her jump, it seemed so out of place, so wide and happy on someone that was a known playboy. “Well, thank you again Bernie for letting me read your work. I can’t wait to read more, if you are comfortable with me doing that of course.”

“Uh sure, it might take me a while to write more though…”

“That’s fine, take your time.” Sylvian checked his phone. “Oh, it’s getting late, we should probably get going.”

Bernadetta checked the time herself and was surprised to see what time it was. Emery was working late tonight so Bernadetta needed to get home to make dinner.

“Sorry for keeping you Bernie.”

“It’s fine, I’m the next stop over so…”

“Oh you take the train here? You want me to walk you to the station?” As soon as the words left his mouth, Sylvain winced.

“No, it’s okay,” she said quickly. “I’ve done it before and it’s still light out.”

“Right, yeah.” He put a hand on the back of his neck. “Let me know when you’re done with the next chapter, I can’t wait to read it.”

“Uh yeah, I’ll do that,” she replied softly. After another awkward moment, she dipped her head slightly and happily gave in to her instinct to flee.

She passed the school gates before coming to and realizing how rude that was of her. “Ack Berne, you did have to do something like that! Why did you have to freak out like that? Like it was a normal conversation before that.” She ran her fingers through her hair, a few strands being pulled out from her furious, frantic combing. What if he found her to be super rude? She did make him wait too and then she ran out on him. Should she go back and apologize? No way, she didn’t have enough courage to do anything like that.

Instead her feet took her in the direction of the train station and she felt her phone go off in her pocket. A text from Dorothea.

***

Well that ending could have gone better.

Sylvain walked home, the opposite direction of the train station. While he was reading and talking about her work, everything had seemed to be fine. Bernie even seemed to come out of her shell slightly and he saw how her eyes seemed to sparkle and twinkle a little, the corner of her mouth twitching into a small smile as he threw out his theories of what could happen next in the story.

It was after that, that was a problem. She seemed to struggle with any sort of basic conversation although maybe it was partly his fault for suggesting to walk her to the train station. She was right, it was still light out so it made no sense why he should have even offered it in the first place. It felt weird not to though, since the only reason she had stayed late was so he could read her work and it was the least he could do. Yeah, that didn’t go well at all and she ended up running away like she did the first time they had an actual conversation.

He really was no good with these kinds of girls, however he had to persevere if he wanted to read more of her work. Based on what he read so far, Bernie’s work was worth it. Feeling his phone go off, he pulled it out and saw it was a text from Dorothea.

_“Thanks for not being an asshole to Bernie.”_

_“No problem? Wait, she texted you?”_

_“Well I texted her to check in and she said you didn’t do anything weird so I thought I should acknowledge the fact that you have the ability to put in some effort.”_

_“Thanks, I guess.”_ After a moment Sylvain added quickly. _“Did she say anything else about me?”_

_“Like what?”_

Like what anyway? _“Like if there is anything I should improve on for next time? To make her feel more comfortable I mean.”_

A minute passed and then another. Sylvain could see Dorothea was typing something but hadn’t sent anything yet.

Another minute later, a response came in. _“Just keep doing what you are doing. Bernie is slow to warm up so it’ll take her time but from what she told me in her texts, she isn’t opposed to you reading more of her work so at least you’re doing something right.”_

Sylvain sighed in relief. That was good at least. “Just have to keep up what I’m doing huh?” he said softly. Hopefully she would get more comfortable with him soon, he felt like he was a tiger or a lion in the same room as a shaking bunny.


	6. Chapter 6

“Bernie, do you want to go to the café today?” asked Yuri.

Bernadetta shook her head. “Sorry Yuri, I have plans.”

“Ah, you’re seeing _him_ again?” Yuri glanced around the classroom. Classes were done for the day but there were still many students milling around and saying Sylvain’s name would obviously turn a few heads.

Bernadetta nodded. It had been about a month since she started meeting with Sylvain weekly after school so he could read her work. Sure she still found it nerve-wracking and awkward but she was slowly getting more comfortable with being around him, Sylvain surprisingly kind despite his reputation. He never said or did anything inappropriate, he seemed to be making a conscious effort to be soft spoken, although whenever he talked about her writing, it was like he couldn’t help the excitement in his voice. He also didn’t seem to mind if she only came by with half of a chapter written, showing the same level of enthusiasm, well, even more so since it ended on a cliffhanger. It was also good for her because it forced her to keep up a writing schedule and weirdly enough she _enjoyed_ showing him the adventures of Vernie the monster hunter. Sometimes she even caught herself forgetting what kind of boy Sylvain actually was when he wasn’t in the room with her, thinking of him more like Yuri, a male friend she could be comfortable with.

However, could she really say they were friends though? It wasn’t like they talked outside of their weekly meetings, their texts short and to the point, just reminders of when their next in-person meeting was. Besides, Sylvain was definitely a different person from what she saw in the library, the few times she spotted him in the hallways he was flirting with a girl or overall very loud and boisterous. It was like the boy she saw during their library meetings was a completely different person!

Bernadetta opened the door of the library and saw Sylvain was waiting for her at their usual table with a small box.

“What’s that?” she asked as she settled in her seat.

“I got you a little something.” He pushed the box towards her.

“Huh?” She looked at him and then at the box.

“Well, I’ve been reading your work for free for the past month and I realized I should probably thank you for giving me so much of yourself. I mean you write so much for me to read every week.”

“It’s no problem at all,” stammered Bernadetta. “I would have written it anyway, and your feedback is very useful. I went back and changed some old plot points and fixed up some dialogue because you pointed out the inconsistency.”

Sylvain blinked slowly. “Did I?”

She nodded. “You did and I’m grateful to you for doing that.”

Sylvain rubbed a hand on the back of his neck. “Well that’s good. But really, take it though, I had to sneak it in and whatnot and I had to make sure it would survive in a little cooler…” He sighed and shook his head. “Trust me Bernie, it was a lot of work. Oh crap, I didn’t ask if you liked chocolate or not. Annette said it would be okay but I should have checked…”

Curiously, Bernadetta opened the box and gasped, seeing the slice of cake inside. Chocolate with chocolate frosting filling and there was a small chocolate bunny on top. “This is from the cake shop down the street.”

“Yeah, my friend’s girlfriend said it was really good so I thought it would be the best place to buy something for you. I remember you mentioned last week that you liked sweets.”

Bernadetta didn’t know whether to be shocked that he remembered that one-off comment in relation to why Vernie knew so much about desserts, or the fact that that he bought her a slice of cake from the designer, high-end cake shop from down the street. It was expensive but the cakes were amazing and the one time Bernadetta got a pastry from there, she had squealed from how yummy the cake was.

“I even brought you a fork so you can enjoy.” Sylvain handed the plastic fork to her, the tines wrapped in a tissue.

“But, we’re in the library,” she protested. She glanced around at the books on the shelves. Sure it was the smaller library that no one went to it was still a library. She didn’t like drinking from a water bottle in here.

“Oh, right. Should have thought about that.” He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, “Forget it, you don’t have to eat it now then. But it is for you. I insist.”

“Okay…” Was it bad that her mind was wandering to why he bought her the cake in the first place? Sure he said it was in return for her writing but getting her something like this over her writing? It was definitely not worth anything like that.

Although, as she watched him read the next section, he made it seem like her work was worth something, his excitement at seeing the adventures Vernie got into, his gasps at the harrowing fights and the happy smile during scenes between Vernie and her friend, maybe it was possible her work was worth something like this cake.

She reached out into her bag to grab her other notebook, to take notes on Sylvain’s comments when she saw a glint in the corner of her eye. She turned to the door to the library and she thought she saw something move in the glass window pane on the door. She blinked in surprise and rubbed her eyes. Did she imagine it? Probably, she had been up late last night finishing up the current Vernie chapter. Although she had felt like the last two times she met with Sylvain, it felt like someone was watching her for a couple of seconds. It wasn’t long and she had dismissed it, chalking it up to her anxiety but maybe it was something after all?

“Bernie?”

She snapped back to the present and saw Sylvain was looking at her with his head slightly tilted.

“Uh, sorry…” She pulled out the notebook from her bag and dropped it on the table.

“You don’t need to apologize.” 

She had to bite her tongue to prevent herself from saying sorry again. It was a stupid bad habit she had since she was a child and even Yuri pointed out too that she shouldn’t say sorry every time something went wrong.

After Sylvain gave his usual amount of euthanistic feedback, Bernadetta took back her notebook, already having ideas on how to fix some of the older chapters to make the bread crumbs for a certain plot point more apparent. Sylvain unfortunately was unable to pick up the hint about the true mastermind behind the plot in the chapter so that meant either the hint was too vague or there wasn’t enough buildup.

“I hope you enjoy the cake Bernie. Let me know what you think after you taste it, okay?”

“Okay,” she stammered.

She was the first to leave and like always the hallway was empty. It was getting late but a few clubs were still active at this time so it wasn’t strange that students would be milling around. Wait, what if someone was walking past and they saw Sylvain and Bernadetta together in the library? He was well known around campus and it might draw someone’s eye that he was sitting in a library alone with a girl. Or was she just making stuff up due to her anxiety?

“Bernie, come on now…everything is fine,” she mumbled.

“Everything okay?” asked Sylvain, coming up behind her.

Bernadetta squeaked and jumped back in surprise. “Sorry, sorry, yup, everything is fine.” She quickly cleared her throat. “I…I’ll see you next week.”

“See you next week then.” He waved as she quickly walked away.

***

That night, after making and eating dinner, Bernadetta sat at the kitchen table with the slice of cake Sylvain had got for her. It got a little squished on the way home but the little bunny on top had made it. After taking a few shameless pictures, she took a bite and couldn’t help but squeal and flail slightly as the chocolate melted in her mouth. So good! This cake shop was the best.

She ate about half and decided to save the rest for tomorrow. Oh, perhaps Vernie should get a cake that turned into a monster? That would be an interesting chapter. It could be taken as silly at first but then it is revealed at the end to be not a silly, filler episode but something that hints on many of the future plot points. That would be a cool, brilliant idea to write!

Speaking of writing, she did promise to tell Sylvain what she thought about the cake right? She returned to her room and sat on her large teddy bear as she sent a quick text to Sylvain saying how good the cake was.

After it went through, she paused, realizing this was the first time she had texted him something other than a basic, “what are we meeting?” message, and usually Sylvain was the first to initiate the conversation. Did this mean she was getting a little better at this whole socialization thing?

Smiling, she got up and went to her desk. She had already finished her homework earlier today, she might as well start planning out the next chapter of Vernie’s story.

***

Sylvain was in the middle of sexting a girl when he got a message from Bernie.

_“The cake was super yummy, the chocolate melt in your mouth good. Thanks a lot Sylvain.”_

Sylvain couldn’t help but smile. Good. He had felt bad about the fact that he got to read her amazing work every week while he wasn’t able to give her anything back in return. He had begged Felix about letting him talk to Annette about what he could get for Bernie as a thank you. Sure he could have asked Dorothea but she would probably take it the wrong way. It was just a thank you gift, that’s all. Thankfully Felix gave in although he hovered nearby as Sylvain asked Annette about it. Seriously, Felix had nothing to worry about. Sylvain might be an asshole playboy but even he wouldn’t go after his best friend’s girlfriend. 

When Sylvain had checked out the cake shop, he just stared in shock at the prices. So expensive for a little slice of cake! However, Annette had insisted it was the best in the neighborhood and for someone with a sweet tooth like Bernie, she deserved something like this right? So despite the fact it would dip into the part of his allowance he used to keep the girls he spent time with happy and entertained, he bought Bernie the most chocolatey and cutest looking cake he could find.

_“Glad to hear that! I’ll see you next week then Bernie.”_ After sending her the text, he switched back over to the text chain with the other girl. After thinking for a moment he began typing. He might not have Bernie’s skills with words but he knew how to get things done.


	7. Chapter 7

Bernadetta opened her shoe locker and saw an envelope sitting on top of her school shoes. She blinked, rubbed her eyes and stared at it. Nope, still there. Weird. A quick look around but it didn’t look like anyone was paying her any mind. She pulled the envelope off her shoes and opened it. A neat, hand written note looked up at her.

_“Sorry for sending you a note through your locker but my phone is broken so this is the only way I could contact you. Can you meet me during lunch behind the club buildings? There is something we have to talk about._

_-From Sylvain.”_

Bernadetta’s anxiety kicked into overdrive. What could Sylvain want to talk to her about, especially during the school day. They never interacted during school, it was an unspoken rule between them. Oh, what if he wanted the cake back? What if it was a mistake and it wasn’t supposed to be for her? Although that made no sense since he did ask for her opinion on the cake. Then maybe it was about something else? What could it be though?

Wait, she couldn’t be spending her time staring at the shoes, she needed to get to class! After switching to her indoor shoes, she headed for her classroom, her head spinning slightly from the note. Even Yuri could see she was out of sorts and he suggested going with her but she shook her head. It was tempting but Sylvain wanted to talk to her. It was obviously something important that he couldn’t wait until his phone was fixed.

Did he not want to read her works anymore? It was odd how she felt disappointment settle into her stomach at the thought. No! She needed to stop jumping to conclusions!

When the bell rang to signal the beginning of lunch, Bernadetta got to her feet and nodded to Yuri. “I’ll be back,” she said softly.

Yuri waved. “Let me know how it goes.”

***

Dorothea debated if she should attempt to mooch off lunch off of her current boyfriend or just buy it on her own. She was saving up to get this really cute pendant though and if she spent any money, it would ruin her budget. Although, she was on a diet and maybe skipping lunch would help shed the few pounds she was trying to get rid of.

Nope, she dismissed that thought immediately. There was no way she was going to be able to survive an afternoon of classes without some sort of food in her stomach. Sighing, she made her way over to the school store. Even if she couldn’t get any bread, she knew many who did and it was quite easy to get a couple to share with her, all she had to do was put her arms under her breasts and push up.

Boys were so simple at times.

Dorothea glanced out the window to her left that overlooked the club buildings and stopped as she noticed Bernie slowly making her way towards it. Trailing behind her, obviously keeping back far enough to not be noticed were a trio of girls. Dorothea’s eyes narrowed.

She pulled out her phone and quickly called Yuri. She didn’t even wait for him to say hello before launching into her question, “Why is Bernie heading for the club rooms?”

“She got a note from Sylvain,” Yuri’s voice dropped to a whisper at the name, “saying that he wanted to talk to her and meet her behind the club building. His phone is broken so he had to leave a message in her shoe locker. Why? Is something wrong?” Worry creeped into his voice.

“I’ll take care of it, don’t worry Yuri.” Dorothea hung up, her plans for lunch tossed out the window as she hurried to Sylvain’s classroom. Peering in, thankfully he was there, sitting in the back with Ingrid and Dimitri. Dorothea assumed Felix was having lunch with his girlfriend today.

Seeing Dorothea beckoning him over, Sylvain walked over with an obvious confused look. “What’s up Dorothea? You miss me?” He gave her a typical Sylvain grin.

Dorothea rolled her eyes and grabbed his tie and dragged him away from the classroom and close to the window so they would have a tiny bit of privacy.

“Hey! Stop it, I’m going to choke!”

“Well maybe you should.” Dorothea released him and crossed her arms. “Did you ask Bernie to meet with you behind the club building?”

“What? Of course not?” Confusion clouded his vision.

“And is your phone broken?”

“Uh…no?” Sylvain pulled his phone out of his pocket to show her. “What’s going on?”

“Bernie got a note in her shoe locker that you wanted to meet with her behind the club rooms at lunch and that your phone was broken.”

“Huh? I never put a message in her shoe locker. I don’t even know which one is hers.” Understanding dawned in his eyes and Dorothea resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Why were boys so slow on the uptake?

“Either you go over there and take care of it or I will.”

Sylvain shoved his phone back into his pocket. “Behind the club building right?”

Dorothea nodded and watched as Sylvian took off in a fast walk, the fastest he could go without a teacher yelling at him. She threw her hair over her shoulder and took off after him. Sylvain could probably handle it but just in case, well there was a reason why some of the girls in the school called her a bitch.

***

Bernadetta stepped behind the club building but it looked like Sylvain wasn’t here yet. That was okay, she had hurried over after the bell rang after all so she was probably really early. It was obvious no one came back here, the grass was overgrown, and the school fence was covered with ivy. It was aesthetically pleasing to look at though and she wondered if the art club’s room faced this side. She could see how it could be inspiring for a drawing or two.

Oh! Perhaps Vernie could have a chapter where she explores the Seven School Wonders and the final one deals with area behind the club house? Hmmm, it was going to take a bit of work but she could probably figure something out.

Hearing someone come up behind her, she turned and startled, realizing it was not Sylvain at all but three girls.

“Seriously? This is who _he_ was hanging out with?” laughed one of the girls. “There’s no way right? It has to be some kind of joke.” The girl looked to the one in the middle.

The girl in the middle was slightly taller than the other two, her dark brown hair styled similar to Dorothea’s. That wasn’t odd in and of itself, Dorothea was popular and many girls liked to copy her style.

She crossed her arms, her nose wrinkled like she smelled something disgusting. “Why is he spending time with someone like you?”

“Huh?” Bernadetta looked at the girls blankly. Her legs were already beginning to quiver as the two girls on either side of the brunette stepped forward. “What…I’m not sure….”

“Great, she’s an idiot too,” sighed the brunette. “And here I thought you had brains. No body, no brains, seriously, why is Sylvain meeting with you every week?”

Sylvain? This was related to him? What was she thinking, of course it was! She remembered in some of the books she read about girls bullying the person that was meeting with the person they liked. Was that what was going on here?

“There…there’s nothing going on between us…” Bernadetta took a step back.

The brunette stared at her in disbelief. “He’s been cancelling all of my dates with him so he could see _you_ ,” she spat. “And you’re going to deny there’s nothing going on there?” She nodded and before Bernadetta got react, her two friends were on either side of Bernadetta and roughly grabbed Bernadetta’s arms, holding her in place.

The brunette reached out the pocket of her skirt and pulled out a pair of scissors. “Maybe we should do a little something with that hair of yours. It’s getting a little long girls, I think we need to give her a trim right?”

“Of course,” giggled one.

“You better not move otherwise you might lose a part of your ear,” said the other.

Bernadetta winced as the girls on either of her tightened their grip on her arms. She knew there was nothing she could say to change this girl’s mind. The best thing to do was to let them get it done and over with right? Maybe then they’ll leave her alone. Plus it’s just hair, it’ll grow back right?

“Aww, are you going to cry?” sneered the brunette as she stood in front of Bernadetta, the scissors at the ready.

Bernadetta bit her quivering lip. She hated crying in front of other people and she hoped she could hold back until after the girls left.

The brunette grabbed a handful of Bernadetta’s hair and positioned the scissors. “Hmmm, maybe a pixie cut would look nice on you,” she said with a giggle.

“Oh that’s perfect,” chimed one of the girls.

“What the hell are you doing?!”

Everyone froze and turned to the voice. Bernadetta’s eyes widen as she caught sight of Sylvain, his whole demeanor pulsing with anger.


	8. Chapter 8

Sylvain knew girls could be cruel.

He knew some of the girls he had relations with were the bullying type. He never cared about what they did though, the sex too good to pass up.

Now though, he regretted the choice he made to turn a blind eye. He recognized the brunette, she was someone he had slept with a few times, the other two were probably her friends. Sweet Bernie with a big imagination that did not deserve this.

Seeing Sylvain there, the two girls immediately let Bernie go and she crumpled to her knees, her body shaking.

Sylvain took a few steps towards them and the brunette hurried over to him. “Sylvain,” she gushed. “What are you doing here?”

Sylvain stopped, looked at her and the scissors in her hand. Noticing his glance, she quickly put the scissors behind her back. “She just wanted a haircut, that’s all. Right?” She turned to Bernie. “You just wanted a haircut right? Right girls?”

“Yeah!” echoed her two friends.

“Get out of my sight,” growled Sylvain.

The brunette stared at him. “But Sylvain…” She reached for his arm.

Sylvain slapped her arm away. “If you _ever_ do something to her again, you will sorely regret it. Do not test me.”

Her eyes widen. “S…Sylvain…”

Sylvain ignored her and went over to Bernie and kneeled in front of her. He gave her a quick glance over. Besides a few scuff marks from falling down, she looked okay.

“Sylvain, I can explain.”

Sylvain looked back at the girls, none of the warmth he showed Bernie was directed to them. “What are you still doing here? Get out of my sight. And remember what I said. Don’t you ever go near her again.” He turned back to Bernie, hearing the girls fleeing. Good riddance to them. “You okay Bernie?” he asked softly. He grimaced after the words left him, she was obviously not okay, her body shaking like a leaf, tears threatening the corners of her eyes.

“Hey, everything is okay now Bernie. It’s okay.”

She looked up at him, looking lost and defeated, the tears slowly dripping down her face.

Not knowing what else to do, Sylvain put his arms around her and pulled her to his chest for a hug.

***

Sylvain was warm.

He was like a warm blanket pressed tightly around her, his arms steady and secure.

“It’s okay, everything will be okay Bernie,” he said softly in her ear, a hand tracing lazy circles on her back.

Bernadetta could feel her shivers subsiding, the panic slowly fading. However, then a new wave of panic pulsed through her. Sylvain was hugging her. A _boy_ was hugging her. Why was he hugging her? Was this normal? No, Yuri wasn’t this affectionate with her, although he knew her history so that made sense why.

“You okay now?” Sylvain released her from the hug and put a hand on either side of her face, seeming to look for something in her expression.

“Uh yeah,” she stammered, dropping her eyes to the grass. Why was he touching her!?

Thankfully he released her and then sat on the grass and let out a long sigh. “Honestly, I don’t even want to think what would have happened if I had gotten here any later. Thank everything Dorothea saw you.”

“Dorothea did?”

Sylvain nodded. “She saw you from the window going to the back of the club rooms and the girls following you so she let me know. She told me you got a note from me saying to meet me back here?”

Bernadetta realized how stupid it was once he said it out loud. She should have known there was something weird with the note but in her panic she couldn’t think things through.

“I’m really sorry this happened.”

She looked up at him in surprise. “What?”

“I mean it Bernie, I’m really sorry this happened to you. You didn’t deserve this.”

“No, I…, it’s okay,” she stammered. “Really Sylvain.”

“It’s not okay.” He looked at her with a frown. “Honestly, it’s partly due to me sneaking around seeing you only after school. If anything I should probably be treating you like Ingrid-she’s my childhood friend that’s a girl. Everyone leaves her alone despite being friends with me, although she always would kick anyone’s ass that tried to mess with her…hmmm, maybe that won’t work after all…” Sylvain pouted as he seemed to be deep in thought.

“Oh crap, I realized I didn’t ask you what you thought Bernie. What do you think? You think something like that should be good or do you just want to just keep meeting after school in the library?”

What? He wanted her opinion? She barely had even registered what had happened a few minutes ago! “I….I don’t…”

“You don’t what?” he asked gently.

Seeing the person he was during the school hours, it surprised her how gentle he was looking at her, no trace of annoyance in his expression. Just gentle patience as he seemed to be waiting for her to compose her thoughts together.

Bernadetta picked at the grass by her feet. “I think being friends is fine,” she whispered. “In school…”

“Really?” Sylvain’s face broke into a wide smile, similar to the expressions she had seen often when he read the chapters of Vernie’s story. “Awesome Bernie. I’ve been wanting to introduce you to my friends too, I know you’ll get along well with them.” He paused, seeing Bernadetta’s expression. “Maybe later though. One new thing at a time right?”

His expression turned serious. “But if anything like this happens again, you tell me or Dorothea alright? When in doubt, ask one of us.”

Why did he care so much? Bernadetta didn’t think she warranted that much care from him. Heck, they barely even knew each other!

“Everything okay back here?” Dorothea peered around the corner and frowned as she took in Bernadetta’s appearance and hurried over, whacking Sylvain on the side of the head as she passed him. “Really Sylvain? You let a girl sit on the dirt!”

“Ow! You didn’t have to hit me so hard!” Sylvain rubbed the back of his head and pouted as he looked at Dorothea.

“Maybe I should have hit you harder so you have some common sense. Here Bernie, let me help you up.” Dorothea began patting the dirt off of Bernadetta’s skirt and blazer. “Hmmm, let’s get you to a bathroom to get cleaned up a bit, alright?” She put a protective arm around Bernadetta’s shoulder.

“Okay,” whispered Bernadetta.

“I’ll see you later then Bernie.” Sylvain got to his feet and dusted off his pants.

“S...See you later. Oh and thank you Sylvain.” She gave him the best smile she could in that moment, which was probably pathetic and stupid since there was still a small lump in the back of her throat.

Sylvain seemed taken aback at first but he nodded and waved. “See you later Bernie.”

***

“Where did you go?” asked Ingrid as Sylvain returned to his seat.

“Mounting a daring rescue.” Sylvain collapsed in his chair and rested his head on his desk, trying to process everything that had just happened. Bernie getting jumped, him trying to actually comfort a girl without it leading anywhere-holy crap, he hugged her! He didn’t just hug girls.

However he didn’t know what else to do in that moment. Bernie was obviously overwhelmed and freaking out and he really didn’t know what to do about crying girls. Thankfully Dorothea decided to show up and take care of her, he had no idea where to go next with everything.

Bernadetta’s smile though when she thanked him. It was small but he could see the sincerity in it, the gratefulness in it and for a moment he thought his heart skipped a beat. She had a very cute smile he had to admit.

He sat up and shook his head. Where in the world was his line of thinking going? Probably all of the adrenaline from the moment. He snatched one of the sandwiches from Dimitri’s lunch.

“You could asked and I would have given you one,” Dimitri protested.

“I know but I thought I would save an extra step.” Sylvain winked at him before taking a bite of his newly acquired lunch.

***

“Honestly, boys can be so thoughtless,” huffed Dorothea as she dotted her handkerchief on a few of the dirt spots on Bernadetta’s skirt. “I can’t believe he made you sit on the grass for so long.”

“It’s okay Dorothea,” protested Bernadetta. “Really, I don’t think anyone will notice.”

“True but the stains might be hard to get out later.” Dorothea looked at Bernadetta’s face with a frown. “Your eyes aren’t that red which is good. You want some makeup though to help brighten you up a bit?”

“No, that’s okay.” Makeup was for girls like Dorothea who knew how to use it. Bernadetta was plain and boring, makeup wouldn’t look good on her. “Thanks for telling Sylvain…”

“Of course. It was a lucky break that I saw you from the window. Oh and don’t worry about those girls Bernie, I made sure they wouldn’t bother you again.”

Bernadetta decided it would be for the best to not ask what Dorothea did.

“So how did he rescue you anyway? Did he jump from the second story window of the club room?”

“Dorothea! He would have broken his leg!”

“What? Sometimes boys can be quite dramatic.”

“Nothing like that. He just came around the corner and yelled at them to leave me alone…” She remembered the hug and those protective arms around her.

“And?” prompted Dorothea.

Bernadetta shook her head. “That’s all. We talked for a bit and he calmed me down.” She had a feeling Dorothea would not read the hug the same way she did. Heck, she wasn’t too sure on the hug herself but her gut instinct told her it was more for her comfort than anything nefarious. He didn’t try to touch her anywhere inappropriately after all.

“Maybe he can be a gentleman once in a while.” Dorothea rolled her eyes. “Anyway, let’s get you back to the classroom. There’s still a couple minutes left for lunch and you’re probably starving.”

As Dorothea mentioned it, Bernadetta became aware of the rumbling in her stomach and she couldn’t help but blush.

“Alright, guess your stomach is saying it loud and clear, time for you to get some food.” Dorothea draped an arm around Bernadetta’s shoulder before leading the way back to Bernadetta’s classroom.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm planning on doing fictober/promptober next month so I have been busy putting together a prompt list from various sources(I didn't like all of the prompts for a single prompt list so I'm picking and choosing). I'll try to work on this one as well during next month but I have 31 prompts to write, haha. I'm also planning to have it all Sylbern/Sylvadetta themed!

Sylvain tossed the bread he had just got from the school store in the air as he made his way back towards the classroom. Another day, another lunch period. Although he guessed it was a little different today than yesterday. He was officially friends with Bernie outside of their weekly library meetings!

He had spotted her in the morning, near the shoe locker and he went over and said hello, leaning against the lockers next to hers. Bernie had looked up at him in surprise before stammering out a hello of her own. Sylvain used the moment to eye the crowd of people around them, trying to recognize any of the girls he had some relations with.

The only one he spotted nearby was Dorothea, who gave him a nod before going on the lookout herself. What happened to Bernie yesterday was not going to happen again if they could help it.

Of course that was all the interaction he had with Bernie that morning. Class was going to start soon and it looked like that one little hi was sending her into a tailspin. As he headed for his class, he debated on texting her and asking if she was alright but then dismissed the thought. Bernie was definitely the type of person to not check her phone during class.

Sylvain stepped out into the courtyard in the middle of campus. Since it was a nice day out, many students were having their lunch out here. He wasn’t really a fan of eating outdoors, it made his food taste funny but this was the fastest path back to the classrooms.

He was halfway across the courtyard when he noticed Bernie sitting on a bench under a tree with a bento box open in her lap. He blinked. Hang on, was she eating lunch by herself? After a moment of debating, he shook his head and walked over.

“Hey Bernie.”

Bernie startled and for a moment Sylvain was worried her lunch was going to tumble off her lap and land on the ground. “Sylvain,” she whispered.

“Sorry, did I startle you?”

“It’s okay, I was just lost in thought.” She looked down at her lunch and then at him. “I was just plotting out the next chapter of Vernie’s story in my head.”

“Oh really? What kind of craziness is she going to get into? The fridge monster from the last chapter seriously came out of nowhere but it was so good. Wait, maybe you shouldn’t tell me since technically it is a spoiler and I enjoy being surprised.”

She giggled and Sylvain paused to stare, the sound almost like chorus bells in his ears. The wind seemed to pick up slightly, ruffling her hair and she lifted up a hand to push her hair behind an ear.

Realizing he was probably staring like an idiot, he shook his head slightly and gave her a smile and gestured to the spot next to her. “You eating alone today?” 

“Oh, uh yeah. The drama club is having an emergency meeting so Yuri had to go to it.”

“And Dorothea?”

Bernie shook her head. “She’s in a different class so I rarely see her anyway. She’s really popular and has a lot of friends.” The edge of Bernie’s mouth twitched like she wanted to say more but she focused on her food. “I don’t mind getting to eat alone every now and then. It’s nice.”

Sylvain couldn’t see how that was, he was the type that always needed to be surrounded by people to really feel like himself. Obviously Bernie was introverted and it would make sense to leave her alone but…

“You mind if I sit next to you? My friends are being annoying so I would rather spend time with more pleasant company than with them. No pressure though.”

“Oh, it’s fine.” She shifted over slightly and Sylvain sat down next to her on the bench. His usual instinct was to spread his legs out and take as much space as possible but with Bernie, he had been really trying to taper that down. She always seemed to be trying to make herself as small as possible and he really did not want to make her feel like he was overshadowing him. Huh, now that he was thinking about it, that was pretty unlike him in general. Maybe Dorothea was right about Bernie’s “protect me” vibe.

“Is that all you’re eating?”

Sylvain looked at Bernie in confusion and then at the bread he had just opened from the school store. “Yeah?” he said slowly.

She looked down at her lunch and then at him before she gestured to her lunchbox. “Here, you can take a croquette and an omelet.”

“Bernie no, I can’t do that,” he protested. “That’s your lunch.”

She shook her head. “You need…you need to eat more than that Sylvain. And uh, don’t worry, I always make extra because Yuri eats a couple things from me so it’s a bit too much right now.” She bit her lip. “And, I guess it’s sort of a thank you for yesterday?”

“Really, it was nothing Bernie. No one else has bothered you right?”

She shook her head. “No one.”

“Good. You let me know if anyone has and I’ll take care of them.”

“Y…yeah.” She cleared her throat. “But really Sylvain, you can take one. Like I said, a small gift for yesterday. Although I guess it isn’t much of a gift. Oh Bernie, what are you saying, it’s a weird thing to gift since it wasn’t really a gift…”

Sylvain was taken aback by the way she was talking about herself. She never used that voice when they were talking in the library, although he guessed in those situations it was more him talking than her.

Well either way, he didn’t really like how she was putting herself down like that. “I think I will take a croquette after all.” He reached into her lunch box and took a croquette and popped it in his mouth since it was the perfect bite sized piece. His eyes widen as the crunchy texture on the outside melted to smooth potato on the inside, perfectly seasoned to enhance the potato flavor.

“Holy crap, that’s so good Bernie!”

“It’s nothing special,” she stammered.

“No way! That’s honestly the best croquette I’ve ever had, even better than my mother’s and she makes a mean croquette. Your mom must be an amazing cook.”

“Oh, I make my own lunch.”

“You made it!?” What could Bernie not do? She was an amazing writer and she was an amazing cook as well? “Did you ever think of writing a cookbook? Cause you could totally write a cookbook.”

“It isn’t that amazing…” She stared at the ground, her face taking on a hint of red.

“It is! Oh man, I’m going to remember this croquette for the rest of my life.”

“I could make you some for tomorrow,” she stammered. “As a real thank you for yesterday.”

Sylvian looked at Bernie wide-eyed. “You don’t have to! I’m already reading your amazing work…” He trailed off seeing how her face fell and he was worried she was going to start talking to herself again in that derogatory way. “Sure, you can make me something tomorrow.” His heart felt like it skipped a beat as she looked up at him and gave him that soft, cute smile.

“Do you have any food preferences? Allergies?”

“No allergies and no preference really. Don’t go out of your way to make something different than what you usually make okay? I mean that croquette was amazing.” Sylvain was still reeling over how good it was. He felt his phone go off in his pocket. “Sorry, hang on a sec Bernie.” He pulled it out and saw it was a text from Dimitri asking if he was alright. Oh yeah, Sylvain had told him he would be right back.

He quickly sent a text back that everything was fine and he wouldn’t be coming back until the lunch break was almost over. “Sorry about that.” He shoved his phone back in his pocket. “So you’re a good cook and an amazing writer, what else can you do Bernie?”

***

Bernadetta hummed to herself as she prepared the lunches for the next day. She always did it the night before so she wouldn’t have to rush in the morning. Also there was a chance her mother could be sleeping and Bernadetta didn’t want to disturb her by making too much noise in the kitchen.

Since she wasn’t too sure on Sylvain’s likes and dislikes, she decided to keep it simple for tomorrow. Rice with a side of croquettes and a side salad. After a moment of debating she decided to arrange some cut carrots and spring onion into Nee’s face. She wasn’t very good on making character faces but she had to admit, it looked very cute with sesame seed eyes.

“Oh, what’s going on here?”

Bernadetta squeaked and whirled around to see Emery peering into the kitchen. “Mom, I didn’t hear you come in.”

“Well you seemed to be hyper focused on making those lunches.” Emery put a hand on Bernadetta’s shoulder as she peered at the lunches. “Well those are really cute. Are you making it for Yuri?”

“No, someone else.”

“Oh?” Emery opened the fridge and began pulling out items to make dinner. “Who?”

“Just a friend…” Was there even friends though? Sylvain seemed to think so and she guessed they had a very friend-like conversation at lunch today. Although it felt like she was talking way more than he was. Sylvain just kept asking questions about her, about her interests and likes and for some reason she felt comfortable enough to tell him. About her interest in needlecrafts and in carnivorous plants and how she did a bit of drawing on the side. He just listened quietly for the most part only interrupting to gasp or compliment her.

“A friend huh?” Emery said thoughtfully. “Is this the same boy from earlier? The one that wanted to read your writing?”

Bernadetta nodded as she packed up the bentos to put into the fridge overnight. “He…he helped me out with something so it’s a thank you.” Emery had enough to worry about that Bernadetta didn’t tell her what happened a few days ago with the girls.

“Well I’m sure he will be happy to receive it then. Now get out of the kitchen so I can make us a delicious dinner okay?”


End file.
